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VFK Galaxy Gardening Quest
Description Here on Earth, plants help keep our air fresh and our water drinkable. When we go into space for long distance space travel, or to establish a colony on the moon or Mars, we will be bringing plants with us. Plants, as our fellow astronauts, will help keep our water drinkable and our air fresh in a space environment as well. On today's quest, we will explore the history and future of research on what it will take to bring plants with us to the planets and stars. Prizes Questions 1. Right now, for each mission into space, the astronauts carry all the food needed for the duration of the trip. For long term space conditions such as those on the International Space Station, food is delivered by the space shuttles. If a mission, however, involves traveling to a distant star, or even going to Mars (a three year journey), renewable food resources will be essential for survival. Because the interaction of humans, plants and microbes can be balanced to create a sustainable living environment, research is ongoing to find out how to grow plants in space. All the conditions on earth which enable plants to thrive don't exist in space, or are significantly different. What group is doing significant research on growing plants in low pressure? * University of Alaska, Anchorage * Texas A & M University, College Station * Harvard University, Massachusetts * Antarctic Research Station 2. The obstacles to growing plants in space are many. On the moon there is no atmospheric pressure, and gravity is only one-sixth of Earth's. The moon's periods of light, or its "days" last about one of Earth's months, and are followed by two weeks in the dark. In addition, the moon lacks carbon which is necessary for photosynthesis. On Mars, the atmosphere is about 95% carbon dioxide, and the atmospheric pressure is one-hundredth of Earth's. A Martian day is slightly longer than 24 hours, however, there is less light available. Scientists can grow nearly any plant in a growth room where heat, light, nutrients and water are all supplied in correct amounts. However, the cost of getting the heavy equipment into space at approximately $15,000 a pound is prohibitive. Go to the Victorian park in Victorian Age and say this quote by Ray Bradbury. Say: "Life is trying things to see if they work." 3. The solution to many of the problems of building a "greenhouse" in space is to be able to grow plants in a low pressure environment. When plants are grown under low pressure, there is less material needed to construct the "greenhouse" environment, therefore less weight to lift into space. Also, when dealing with a vacuum such as on the moon, there is less leakage of gases such as oxygen, carbon dioxide and nitrogen into the vacuum. It also means that less of those gases are required to create the environment and therefore less to transport or artificially produce in space. The astronauts tending the garden could work in an atmosphere down to only a third of regular atmospheric pressure and if they carried an oxygen supply, they would not need a space suit. In low pressure experiments thus far, what are the results? * Growing plants in low pressure is not possible. * Plant growth is less than normal. * Plant growth is about the same. * Plant growth is more than normal. 4. Under very low pressure conditions, plants get confused. Low pressures make plants react as though they were drying out. Experiments using pressures only one-tenth of Earth's for 24 hours fooled plants into pulling water through their leaves very quickly, so they needed to take up extra water to replace it. The plants were supplied with plenty of water, and the humidity in the growing environment was kept at 100%, however, the plants interpreted the faster water movement as drought conditions. The plants were wasting their energy and resources reacting to a problem that didn't exist. This same reaction can also work for a plant in certain circumstances. Go to the dark forest room in Audubon's Wildlife Adventure game and say this quote by Werner von Braun, say "Research is what I am doing when I don't know what I am doing." 5. Science fiction stories have envisioned fully self-sufficient colonies on the moon, or other planets and in space. The International Space Station (ISS) brings that dream closer, however, the ISS is not self-contained. The ISS life support system is mechanical, so all the food must be shipped from Earth. To enable future spacefarers to engage in long term space exploration and colonization, biology must be incorporated into the life support system. Research is ongoing into developing a system where people, plants, microbes and machines all form a mini ecosystem which is able to support space voyagers completely and indefinitely. What is this type of biological life support system called? * Symbiogenic * Intersynthetic * Bioregenerative * Bioeconomy 6. Scientists are working on creating a portable life supporting ecosystem where each element interacts and supports the others in a self contained environment. In theory, people and plants are perfect traveling companions in space. People breathe oxygen and release carbon dioxide, while plants use carbon dioxide and release oxygen. People can eat plants to obtain nourishment, vitamins and minerals. Human waste and inedible parts of plants when broken down by microbes in "bioreactors" supply nourishment for plants to grow. Microbes and plants, supplemented by machines can be used to purify water. The only ingredient missing from the equation is energy supplied by light. Go to the Deserted Desert room in Audubon's Wildlife Adventure game and say: "Star light, star bright." 7. The key to creating a successful self contained system is to get the details correct. Identifying the right kind of plants to go with people into space is a demanding challenge. These critical elements of the biological life support system would ideally have short stalks for saving space, would be mostly edible, and would thrive in low light conditions. They should also be resistant to microbial diseases. Researchers are experimenting with different varieties of crops such as rice, wheat, lettuce, potatoes and other types of plants to find the ones that best meet this criteria. Having plants that can be destroyed by disease when millions of miles from Earth, could be devastating to people, so great effort is placed on selecting plant varieties that are reliable. What name has been given to the experimental test chamber which is designed to test all the elements of a bioregenerative life support system, complete with humans? * BLS Chamber * Ground-Alpha * Utopia * BIO-Plex 8. NASA scientists are experimenting with ways to incorporate biotechnology and nanotechnology into plants so they are "smart." Advances in these fields may enable researchers to alter the plant's genetic structure so that they have molecular sensors in their cells. These sensors would monitor the plants' health and would even be programmable, with scientists able to control exactly when the plants sprout and flower. Other research would focus on engineering plants to be able to protect themselves from the higher levels of radiation in space. They could also potentially have nanotech elements in the plant's cells which could increase the efficiency of photosynthesis by bringing light directly into the plant's cells. Go to the Australian Waterfall and say this quote by President Ronald Reagan. Say: "We've grown used to the idea of space." 9. In a space greenhouse, with plants growing in low gravity conditions, the plants don't feel the pull of gravity. Because of this, the water will distribute itself evenly in the "soil" which could keep the water and air from reaching the roots. Scientists have worked on selecting the perfect size of granule for the soil material. Too large a size will result in the roots not getting enough water, too small a size and the roots cannot get enough air. For example, a small sized grain would act like a sponge which holds water effectively, but not air. A large sized grain would hold more air and less water. The grain size of soil is less relevant on the Earth's surface because water will percolate down through the soil, aerating the roots as it goes. Without gravity, the plant must rely on capillary action to pull the water to the roots while allowing air to circulate. What is the optimum size of soil grain? * .15-.25 millimeters * 3-4 millimeters * .5-.7 millimeters * 1-2 millimeters 10. The BIO-Plex is a multi-chamber test facility developed by NASA Johnson Space Center. Its goal is to have a highly advanced life support system which can support crews for space missions of long duration. The BIO-Plex is based on the bioregenerative principles and physiochemical processes which enable food, a breathable atmosphere and potable water to be produced. Its ultimate purpose is to sustain human life in a self-contained system designed for installation on a planetary surface. The BIO-Plex has a fully automated element with sophisticated robotics designed to support researchers in the production of food crops, including seeding, harvesting and storing food. Go to the Garden outside the door of your Colonial Living Room and say this quote by Werner von Braun, say, "I have learned to use the word impossible with the greatest caution." Answers 1. Texas A & M University, College Station 2. Go to the Summer Park and say, "Life is trying things to see if they work." 3. Plant growth is more than normal. 4. Go to the Dark Forest and say, "Research is what I am doing when I don't know what I am doing." 5. Bioregenerative 6. Go to the Deserted Desert and say, "Star light, star bright." 7. BIO-Plex 8. Go to the Australian Waterfall and say, "We've grown used to the idea of space." 9. 1-2 millimeters 10. Go to the Backyard and say, "I have learned to use the word impossible with the greatest caution." Category:Quests